Leave Everything Behind
by Rani Jashalithie
Summary: "This was it. She was going to leave everything behind, leave Bella, Cissy, Mother and Father. Everything."


Andromeda leaned down from the Astronomy Tower. This was it, her final moments on Earth, alive. She was going to jump, and leave everything behind, leave Bella, leave Cissy, leave Mother and Father, leave Ted.

_Ted._

A sob caught in her throat at the sound of his name. He was the one she'd thought would stop her, make her see reason that was blinded by hate. She'd told him what she planned to do, she'd hinted at it, and he wasn't stupid. He knew.

So why wasn't he here?

_Because he doesn't care_, a nasty voice at the back of her head hissed. _He doesn't care, he never did. _

She didn't want to believe it, she really didn't. The cold December wind stirred the hem if her translucent nightgown around her knees. She wanted to die beautiful. If her hesitation proved to last long, and if in the morning she was still alive, surely the cold would freeze her. A more painful death, but death nonetheless. Sweet relief from the fate she would face otherwise.

She felt tears freeze on her cheeks. The same cheeks that were endlessly pinched by her mother in a futile attempt to make her look more beautiful. Her now black eyes blurred with tears, the same eyes that she would change to endlessly amuse Ted. Blue, grey, green, hazel, brown, black. The one thing she'd always had control over, her entire life. The only thing.

She hadn't told Ted about the initiation. Bella was now a Death Eater, and Andromeda knew she was next. She knew what she had to do in order to receive the supposed highest honor and be branded, and she could not bear to see a Muggleborn, _muggleborn,_ she told herself fiercely, not _mudblood_, writhe and scream under her. Every flail of an arm, every twitch of a leg, she saw Ted's face before her, with that adorable crooked grin.

Andromeda shakily stepped onto the edge of the Tower. She felt dizzy as she peered down to see how far exactly she'd have to suffer before the ground slammed into her.

"Andy?"

He heart stopped and she squeezed her eyes shut in a vain attempt to stop the tears that would surely never stop.

"Andy? Merlin, An, it's freezing. And what are you doing there? C'mon down, love." She heard the thick footsteps and felt the cloak being draped over her shoulders. She felt an arm wrapping around her trembling shoulders and turned to bury her face in his jumper. He guided her away from the edge and they both sat down on the floor.

She couldn't stop the tears now or ever. Her body was racked with the sobs as she clung onto Ted for dear life. She felt his gentle fingers raking through her hair, felt the beat of his heart quicken, felt his hands gently rubbing her back. She couldn't stop anytime soon. She couldn't breathe anymore, her body shook with the effort of obtaining oxygen and she felt like she was going to die. She could hear Ted's voice in her ear, telling her to breathe and relax, deep breaths. He had his hand on her back, instructing her when to inhale and exhale. She followed his instructions carefully, knowing that she could die if she didn't. And she didn't want to anymore.

Finally, _finally_, her breathing returned to normal. "Better?" Ted asked her kindly. She nodded and raised her head to look at him. He smiled and kissed her nose.

She started telling him everything. Everything. She resisted the urge to hyperventilate and instead wound her fingers in his and held on tight. He listened to every word. When she was done, she looked up to gauge his reaction. Suddenly he was kissing her everywhere, her nose, her eyes, her cheeks, her hair, her forehead, her neck. She took a deep shuddering breath and whispered, "Marry me, Ted." He stopped and stared at her with incredulous eyes. "I'm sorry?" She smiled through the tearstains. "Marry me, we'll run away to France or something, away from my mad family, away from all of _this_." Ted pulled her close to him. "I will marry you someday, Andy. I love you too much not to. But not now. If I'm going to marry you, I'll do it properly, talk to your family, make them see reason, and buy you a nice ring, one which I haven't got enough money for just now." He mumbled the last part. Andromeda laughed harshly. "A _ring_? You're worried about a bloody_ ring_? You must be absolutely mad! As for talking with my family-do you know who they _are_? You'll-you'll die, Ted. They'll kill you, and that might just kill me." Ted looked into her eyes. "I suppose you weren't thinking of me when you planned to jump to your death, were you? I _will _marry you, Andy, I promise. But now I can barely take care of myself, let alone you." Andromeda got up and sat in his lap. "You don't understand, do you? I don't care about money, I'll live in a shack. I'll wear a ring of tin. But I can't go back there, I really can't. I might-I don't know, stay with Sirius for a while if he lets me, but I can't go home. That'll be suicide. They'll r-recruit me, and make m-me torture other p-people... I can't take it anymore, Ted, please." she begged him.

He hugged her close to him and stroked her hair. "Come home with me for the holidays, alright? We'll talk then. You can live with me for as long as you like."

She snuggled deeper into his jumper. "Thank you, Ted, I love you."

"I love you too, Andy. We'll figure something out, I promise."


End file.
